


Mr. Brightside

by DeadlyBingo



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Oliver and Felicity as teachers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-09
Updated: 2017-02-09
Packaged: 2018-09-23 04:36:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9641021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeadlyBingo/pseuds/DeadlyBingo
Summary: After losing her financial aid for her senior year at MIT, Felicity joins a program that allows her to trade a year of teaching in a needy area for the remainder of her tuition. Though the work is initially more difficult than she anticipated, she soon meets someone who helps her to see the bright sides of the job. (Olicity AU)





	

After getting into MIT, Felicity never expected to have to tell someone not to _lick a window_. And she _definitely_ never expected to have to repeat the direction twice in one week.  Yet here she was doing her best impression of her mother’s ‘I mean business’ look and being openly laughed at by a lanky fifth grader who would be taller than her within the year.

Working at an elementary school had _not_ been in Felicity’s 5 year plan. Even as a child she observed her teachers and pitied them for the chaos they were surrounded with. But after she lost most of her financial aid for her senior year, a position that traded tuition for a year of technology classes in a needy city seemed like a logical choice. Even, just maybe, a fun one. At least it did until she remembered she had _zero_ experience with children.

“Jackson, I thought I warned you yesterday that licking the window is _unsanitary_. It’s cleaned with chemicals- _if it ever has been cleaned_ \- but either choice could really hurt your stomach.  It could be as bad as licking the floor-”

Before the words were even fully out of her mouth, Jackson’s eyes began to shine with a new challenge.  His suspiciously large tongue flew out of his mouth and he began to kneel toward the floor, keeping his eyes trained on Felicity.  

Her mind began to race.

Was she even _allowed_ to grab him? Maybe.

Would she get fired for letting him lick the floor and _not_ grabbing him? Probably. 

Would his overbearing mother blame Felicity either way? _Definitely_.

And Felicity could not afford to find a new position now.

But before her arms caught up to her brain, Jackson seemed to float back into a standing position as a low voice chuckled, “I thought we’ve been over this, Mr. Myers? No more trying to impress the pretty, new teachers with your bravery. They prefer when you sneak them back a cookie from lunch.”

 

* * *

 

 

As Jackson began to spit simultaneous denials and excuses, Felicity tried to suppress her blushing to maintain at least a semblance of composure.

 _Who was this guy?_ She would guess the gym teacher by the looks of those muscles. But in all honesty, she hadn’t ventured much outside her classroom so she didn’t even know for sure he worked in the building.

“I wish this was the first time I met someone through _this_ kid and his crazy antics.” The mystery man shifted so he was still holding onto Jackson’s shoulder with his left hand as he extended his right. “I’m Mr. Queen, this lucky guy’s teacher. Oliver to you.”

Felicity began to reach out for a handshake but realized, only as her hand was about to meet his, that she was still clutching the red pen she had been waving around like a wand during class.  Of course, instead of just putting it in her other hand _like a normal person would_ , she fumbled with it for what felt like an eternity before finally latching it onto her staff ID lanyard.

“Ms. Smoak?” Oliver guessed, his eyes floating down to her picture before a hint of a smile appeared.

“Felicity.” She greeted before a snicker from Jackson forced her to add, “To _you_ , I mean. Ms. Smoak to the kids. I’m still getting used to that one. Makes me feel like my _mother_.”

“You have a _mother_?” Jackson’s eyes grew wide as he looked back to his teacher in disbelief.

Before Felicity thought better she began to mumble her usual, “If you could even call her that” But luckily, Oliver jumped in with, “Jackson, buddy, you’re going to miss all of lunch and then they’ll make you sit out of recess. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

Without hesitation, or even an utterance of an apology, Jackson took off into the hallway. And Felicity was suddenly alone with the guy who looked more like a male model than any teacher she had ever seen.

“I know that wasn’t an appropriate comment to make with him here… you, you know, or in general.” Felicity found herself looking down as she went into her far too frequent apology. “Using a filter isn’t always a strength for me. Which _obviously_ can be an issue in a classroom.”

“It’s fine, my family can be… _trying_ as well.” The left side of Oliver’s mouth lifted just slightly and Felicity wondered if he was amused _by_ her or _at_ her.

“If only you were one of those _billionaire_ Queens who’re always in the newspaper. You wouldn’t be stuck dealing with mischievous kids and helicopter parents _all_ day long.”

Admittedly, for someone with her advanced IQ, it took Felicity much longer than it should have for her to realize the grimace that replaced the smirk on Oliver’s face. It was only when he shoved both hands in his pockets that she made the connection.

“Shit… I mean, _frack_ … You’re one of _them_ aren’t you? I thought I read that that girl in the tabloids had an older brother.” Felicity raised a hand to her forehead. “Annnd now I’m mentioning your sister being in the _tabloids_ , which is probably _super_ awkward breakfast conversation with your mom.   _Not_ that I assume you still live with your family. Though I wouldn’t blame you. Just from what I’ve seen on postcards at the convenience store, your place is _gorgeous_. Oh God… I’m _rambling_. _Again_.”

Oliver shoved a hand in his pocket, his eyes flicking down for just a moment. “My sister is… going through a phase, admittedly. But I did too, and I eventually outgrew it.” Oliver looked around the classroom, a smile spreading across his lips.  “ _Actually_ , teaching and the 6am mornings is kind of what _forced_ me to grow out of it. I hope Thea, my little sister, eventually finds the same motivation.”

Felicity couldn’t help but be amazed that he seemed so honest, open, for someone she knew had experienced so much tragedy.  Years ago, his father had disappeared in a boating accident. Shortly after, his mother shocked the city by revealing her husband’s part in a plot to level part of Starling City and she was briefly tried as an accomplice. The case garnered national attention.  Though that situation eventually passed, and Moira Queen now ran the formidable Queen Industries, Felicity couldn’t imagine the stress hadn’t left its own scars on Oliver.

“So how’d you find your way _here_? I mean, if you don’t mind my asking… I’d think your family’s business would love to have you?”

He hesitated for a moment, as if weighing whether she was worthy of hearing his story. But whatever test was going on behind his eyes, Felicity apparently passed. Because after a moment he explained, “I don’t mind. I’m actually surprised _more_ people don’t ask. It’s probably just because it doesn’t involve me peeing on a police car or something of that nature.” Oliver paused, flashing a practiced smile. “I already mentioned that I went through a phase, _right_?”

Felicity nodded, making a mental note to run a search on his name once he left the room.

“I was getting into trouble _constantly_ and barely finished my bachelor’s degree. I’m pretty sure they only passed me to get rid of me. My mom was fed up, with good reason. So when she made a sizeable donation to the Starling Public Schools, she asked them to hire me for a year. And to everyone’s surprise, I loved it. It’s been 3 years now. I’ll finish my Masters in Education over the summer with considerably higher grades than I had at any of the colleges I attended.”

“A guy who barely got through college loves _teaching_?”

“I love the kids. I connect well with them and I think they enjoy me too. And…” Oliver hesitated, as if considering holding back his final reason. But after a moment he added, “And I love feeling like I’m doing some real good in the world.  Making a difference in my city and all that. What about you? How’d _you_ end up here?”

“I go to MIT… well, I _went_ to MIT but lost my financial aid right before my last year.  Luckily the school has a program, one _your company_ actually started to sponsor after that… situation a few years ago. I always assumed for good PR?” Felicity silently chastised herself before continuing. “Basically they have me spend a year teaching in a low-income school and then the rest of my tuition is taken care of. Seemed like a logical trade.”

“And do you like it?” Oliver inquired, his concern genuine.

“I miss school. I mean… being at _my_ school.” Felicity admitted. “Being a student? Tech? Those things I’m _good_ at. Actually, to be honest, I _rock_ at them. And I’m not saying that just to brag about myself. But handling kids and trying to get them to type with more than one finger? _Not_ so much…”

“It’s harder than it looks,” Oliver concurred with a nod. “I didn’t expect that either.”

“Lonelier too,” Felicity added before she had a chance to think twice. She drew a deep breath before she clarified, “It’s just that I think you’re the _only_ adult I’ve talked to at work other than angry parents this week.”

Oliver laughed, taking a step forward as if to remind her she wasn’t crazy. “You’re right. My friends never seem to realize that. You’re with people all day but not people you can _really_ talk to. You have to watch your every word with kids, keep your real self a little guarded from them.” Before Oliver could continue, a bell sounded over the intercom, signaling the end of the final lunch shift. “I should head back to my classroom. Get ready to take kids outside for recess.”

“That sounds… _fun_ ,” Felicity lied, thinking about trying to keep 20 kids under control right after lunch.  She was eternally thankful that her job involved helping to fix smartboards rather than recess or lunch duty.

Oliver actually laughed. “It is when they let you shoot them with nerf arrows. I’d venture to say I’m getting pretty good at it. Maybe I missed my calling?”

As the sound of children filled the hallway, Oliver gave a final parting wave. And Felicity developed just a little hope that she could do more than simply survive this year.

 

* * *

 

 

By the end of that week, Felicity couldn’t help but start feeling discouraged again. She used to think that being a student at MIT was hard.  And, of course, sometimes it was. But she had never been the “fresh meat” for students who prided themselves on seeing if they could make teachers cry. To top it all off, Oliver had been out sick since their meeting. And part of Felicity doubted he’d even remember her name by the time he returned. She was starting to think that she’d have to sabotage his laptop so he’d be forced to visit her again.

“Ms. Smoak, Ms. Smoak!” Jackson came bounding into the room and forcing Felicity out of her daydream, a mischievous smile on his face.

“Hey, buddy!” Felicity greeted, silently tacking on a ‘please don’t lick anything in my room today’ on as he approached her. “Is Mr. Queen back yet?” She asked, trying to avoid an air of desperation in her voice.

“He is! _And_ he sent this for you!” Jackson’s hand jutted out, the end of a sealed envelope crumpled between his fingers.

Despite wanting to tear the envelope open immediately, Felicity tried to hold onto a _semblance_ of self-control and instead began her class, walking her kids through a new coding game that involved helping monkeys on an island. After half the kids finished yelling out money sounds, and one kid’s mother was emailed because he told a group of girls that they looked like monkeys, Felicity finally directed the students to log onto their computers and practice the game in pairs. As they organized themselves, she took the chance to sit down at her desk and quietly pull open the envelope.

Inside she found a single blank post-it and a bright red, plastic pen with a flashlight on the end of the cap.

“What the…” Felicity mumbled to herself as she clicked the light on a off a few times. This had to be one of the weirder gifts she had received (and that included a used soap dish one 3rd grader handed her on the first day of school). It was only when she shone the light on the pink paper that she realized _what_ she was holding.  She used the light to scan the post-it, lighting up what had to be Oliver’s chicken scratch.

 

> _I know being in these rooms can feel like an island… I found my old invisible ink pens while stuck home sick (Yes, at my Mom’s place- don’t laugh). I was hoping they could help? -O_

Felicity immediately wrote out her reply: 

 

> “ _Glad you’re back. Our buddy only chewed on one wire while you were out! I’m considering printing out an award. -F”._

Their notes continued over the next few weeks. Felicity and Oliver sent back and forth encouraging words, funny quotes from kids, occasional doodles, or just random musings about their days. Felicity hid many of her favorites away in the back of her desk to be pulled out for a smile on some of the rougher days of her new job:

 

> _“Samantha cried today because I wouldn’t promise her she was a strawberry in a previous life. - O”_
> 
> _“Andrew has red all over his hands. We haven’t been coloring today… When do I ask if it’s blood? -O”_
> 
> _“My shirt has been inside out since… well this morning. You need to start checking my outfits during bus duty. Especially when it’s because I stayed up late watching Lost at_ _your_ insistence. _-O”_
> 
> _“Alex’s mom emailed me this morning. The gmail account name is best described as pornographic. I’m not sure how to look her in the eye now. -O”_
> 
> _“Erica said she had a dream where my head was in a jar in her bedroom. Should I be afraid? Please swing by after school to check on me. -O”_

Despite the usually humorous nature of their notes, Felicity immediately found it easy to open up to Oliver. Trusting him both with her concerns and her victories. Their biggest challenge was never what to say to each other, but rather getting the notes down one floor and an entire hall away.  Usually the pair just counted on kids looking for any excuse to take a walk between the rooms. But occasionally Felicity and Oliver got sneaky. Sometimes they would write a “professional” note in visible ink while having something else hidden (or just a few keywords hidden, like a note reading “this day is great” would turn into “this day is great at making me want to day drink”). Once Oliver threw a note through her barely open second floor window. And another time, Felicity used the school’s drone to fly her note to Oliver’s classroom window (she always thought that strategy won).

As Oliver predicted, being in touch _did_ help Felicity to feel less like she was “on an island.” And as she got over the loneliness that had consumed her first few weeks as Ms. Smoak, she found herself better able to enjoy the kids, their lessons, and the absolutely unbelievable things that happened throughout her day.  Sure, the stress still _existed_. But it was easily overpowered by the growth and wonder she got to experience through her students. And Felicity wasn’t sure she would have gotten the chance to enjoy the bright sides of this job without Oliver’s friendship.

 

* * *

 

 

Felicity and Oliver had been passing notes back and forth for over 3 weeks, but they were limited by how often they could reasonably send kids across the school to each other’s classes without drawing attention. But Felicity thought she had figured out a solution.  All she had to do was get the nerves up to hit _send_ before her lunch break ended….

 

> **F:** I’m exhausted. Is it Friday yet?

Felicity immediately saw ‘…’ pop up in a long-forgotten ‘chat’ option on their work email, signaling Oliver’s pending reply.

 

> **O:** Wrong. Wednesday. We get an extra hour of staff meeting after school!
> 
> **F:** At least maybe they’ll have snacks?
> 
> **O:** _And_ you get to play staff meeting bingo with me and John! We’re adding a new square for any time an administrator can’t get the sound to work on an ‘inspirational’ video.
> 
> **F:** That sounds tempting, but I’m afraid I won’t make it until then. Heading toward the window now.
> 
> **O:** Fortunately you’re only on the second floor.  As long as you fall smart and avoid hitting your head, it’ll be a break or two at the most. Then I can sign your casts when you’re back on Friday!
> 
> **F:** Thanks for the encouragement, Mr. Brightside.
> 
> **O:** No problem! But really, what’s wrong?
> 
> **F:** Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.
> 
> **O:** Talk to me, Felicity.
> 
> **F:**  I think these kids are trying to break me. And they’re winning.
> 
> **O:** They’re just testing you. It’s what kids do. They’ll be better soon. They already _love_ you.
> 
> **F:** Liar. Anna told me I look like I tried to cut my own hair yesterday. Then offered to give me the name of her mom’s stylist.
> 
> **O:** Your hair always looks amazing, Felicity. Even I know that and I would never lie to you. Plus, everyone thinks you’re remarkable. I can’t get them to stop talking about your class. Apparently they can code now? The old teacher just had them type and play math games all day!
> 
> **F:** Well those lesson plans were boring. And of course they can code! Simple coding games should start early. It’s a necessary skill in the future job market.
> 
> **O:** One I don’t have. Thank God for tenure or else I’d have to work for my mom. Assuming she’d even hire a guy who can’t code.
> 
> **F:** Well I mean it won’t save you in the apocalypse but that along with a few other skills would make me a solid sidekick to a superhero. I think those guys often underestimate the need for tech support.
> 
> **O:** Then we’ll have to team up. My survival skills from camping combined with your tech skills? We could achieve anything!
> 
> **F:** We’d make it a weekend in the zombie apocalypse. Tops.
> 
> **O:** Yeah, but we’d have a _amazing_ weekend.

Felicity looked around the room to make sure none of the students had arrived early to see her flushed cheeks. He _couldn’t_ have meant that the way it sounded to her, right? He was just joking about the zombie apocalypse. A very -not sexy- topic.  She was just reading into it. She only had a dirty mind since she was always trying to filter out her own innuendos.

 

> **O:** We could always grab a drink after work on Friday? Celebrate being another week closer to summer and talk over our zombie apocalypse plan?

Okay, maybe he _did_ mean it that way. Felicity tried to play it cool.

 

> **F:** It’s hard to grab a drink after work when after work is 3PM.
> 
> **O:** That’s why happy hours exist! A teacher’s work day ends so early because they _deserve_ a drink at 3pm. You’ll learn that one soon enough, newbie.

Felicity barely hesitated before typing her reply.

 

> **F:** You’re right. Meet in the parking lot on Friday 3:15?
> 
> **O:** Great. It’s a date. Now new challenge: Your next note has to be stuck on a student’s back.  Good luck.

“Uh, Ms. Smoak.” Felicity immediately jumped to attention, her head turning quickly to see Jackson in the doorway, a smile plastered on his face. “Your screen’s up on the Smartboard. I figured I’d let you know _before_ the other kids arrived.”

“Oh Jackson.” Felicity scrambled to turn off the Smartboard. “What would I do without you?”

“Not have a _date_ with Mr. Queen?”

 

* * *

**_Epilogue- 2 years later:_ **

East Starling Elementary School liked to brag that they had an MIT student on staff.  Sure, it was only part time, but they didn’t feel a need to clarify that in the parent newsletter.

Since finishing her degree the previous year, Felicity returned to teach a few coding courses per week, and spent the rest of her time as the assistant director of Queen Industries.  Sure teaching wasn’t as much Felicity’s calling as her boyfriend’s, but she did enjoy getting to share her skill with the many students who had outgrown the basic “computer skills” class offered at most elementary schools (Also, to Moira’s delight, the position wasn’t bad PR for the business either).

And, of course, as an added bonus Felicity got to re-live her and Oliver’s meeting on an almost daily basis as he forward “secret” messages to her in invisible ink on innocuous post-its.

“Ms. Smoak,” a smiling boy, Andrew, appeared in the doorway, “Mr. Queen wanted me to bring this green post-it to you.”

“How lazy,” Felicity commented as she took the paper. “Normally he brings them himself if he’s on his free period.”

“What do these papers mean?” Andrew asked, an exaggerated furrow in his brow. “Are the colors secret codes or sumthin?”

“Maybe. What do _you_ think lime green means?”

“That he ran out of _better_ colors? Or that maybe he _liiiikes_ you?” Andrew laughed.

“I am _pretty_ great,” Felicity agreed with a wink, causing the 5th grader’s face to flush red. “Now head back to… wherever Mr. Queen stole you from.”

“‘I’m _supposed_ to go to gym,” Andrew answered, shifting on his feet as he obviously tried to avoid leaving the room.

“Head out, Andrew.” Felicity pointed toward the door. “See you for our coding class tomorrow.”

“ _Okayyyy,_ ” Andrew agreed, dragging his feet as he exited the room.

Once the door closed, Felicity found herself pulling out her trusty red pen and scanning the post-it with the attached blacklight.

And then she promptly dropped the pen.  And her jaw. _And almost herself_.

Felicity felt her body falling back in slow motion but time seemed to jump back to normal when her shoulders crashed into Oliver’s chest and his familiar arms instinctively grabbed her waist to keep her up.

“Careful there, Ms. Smoak. We wouldn’t want you to end up accidentally _licking the floor_.”

Felicity couldn’t even find the words to respond to his reference of their first meeting.  In all honesty she could barely manage to pull herself back onto her own two feet and turn to face Oliver, who had appeared in her room without a sound and now stood there with a wide grin on his face and a black velvet box in his hand.

“So are you going to answer the note’s question or not, Felicity?” Oliver paused to open the box and kneel down on one knee before he asked his question again, “Will you marry me?”

**Author's Note:**

> This is based off a prompt on Tumblr, which asked me to expand on how I and another teacher used to send notes to each other in invisible ink and have the students carry the papers between rooms. Most of the other 'crazy student stories' were also inspired by my experiences. Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
